Injury concerns mounting for Middlesex

Middlesex are waiting on scans to determine how long openers Nick Gubbins and Sam Robson will be sidelined.

Both suffered hamstring injuries in the 190-run home defeat by Warwickshire this week, while fellow batsman Adam Voges pulled out of that match shortly before it started with a calf muscle problem.

Australian Voges is expected to be fully fit in time for the four-day match with Surrey at the end of this month.

Should injuries continue to plague the Middlesex top order, England Under-19 captain Max Holden may be recalled from his loan spell at Northamptonshire.

Meanwhile, Middlesex skipper James Franklin admitted his players – crowned as county champions less than a year ago – will be engaging in some honest self-criticism following the shock hammering by bottom-of-the-table Warwickshire at Lord’s.

“We have slipped a little bit away from the type of four-day cricket we have played in recent times,” said Franklin.

“We need to get back to building good partnerships with the bat and being unrelenting with the ball.

“In our last five or six Championship games this season we have been very inconsistent.

“We know we have a lot of individual talent in our dressing room, and we know we have the skills.

“But the secret is how we put it all together collectively, and we have to start doing that again if we are to bounce back in our final five Championship games.”